Shipwreck found, suspected to be Syracuse

Thursday

Jul 19, 2012 at 12:01 AMJul 19, 2012 at 7:17 PM

A shipwreck not seen in nearly 150 years has been discovered in Lake Huron approximately 12 miles east of Cheboygan.

Mike Fornes

A shipwreck not seen in nearly 150 years has been discovered in Lake Huron approximately 12 miles east of Cheboygan.
“Regarding the identification of the wreck, all evidence points strongly to the schooner Syracuse,” said Joe Lavender, who owns the Northern Michigan Dive Center along with Craig Passeno. “The length, the cargo and the location all point to it being the Syracuse. It’s the only one lost near here that was carrying coal.”
Lavender is planning a trip to inspect the ship’s capstan, which could lend some builder’s registration information.
Much of the information about the wreck appears to match well with data supplied by the David Swayze Great Lakes Shipwreck File, which lists the Syracuse as being built in 1853 in Oswego, N.Y. While on a trip from Chicago the wooden schooner sprang a leak and foundered in eight or 10 fathoms of water about 12 miles east of Cheboygan. Swayze’s files say it was off 40-Mile Point, but Lavender said this ship is off 9-Mile Point and the two were often confused in early days.
Records also indicate the ship’s crew made it to Cheboygan by small boat following the sinking.
According to Lavender, the shipwreck was found July 8 by Passeno while aboard the dive charter vessel Rec Diver, owned by Larry McElroy, homeported in St. Ignace.
“Passeno veered over a location that his father, Bob, was told about from a retired fisherman,” Lavender said. “On a single pass, the wreck showed up vividly on side-scan sonar.”
A full week passed before Lavender and Passeno were able to get back to the site to make an exploratory dive to check it out. They reported it to be a schooner, roughly 125 feet in length, broken up but mostly there.
“The vessel was carrying a cargo of coal, though the bulk of the cargo is not there,” Lavender said. “This, along with the entirely missing foredeck, masts, rigging, and anchors lends suspicion that the wreck was subsequently salvaged after sinking.”
Lavender said the wreck lies at a depth of just over 50 feet.
“The wreck appears not to have been dove previously due to the lack of disturbance, blocks, deadeyes, and numerous small items that were only lightly buried by silt, sand, and of course, zebra mussels.” Lavender added.
Northern Michigan Dive Center is planning added trips to the wreck site to take divers out to see the new attraction.
“Consider the following perspective,” Lavender said. “The Syracuse sank on Nov. 10, 1863. Just nine days later, President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address.”